Monday, December 28, 2009

Weyerbacher Riserva

Riserva
Brewed by:
Weyerbacher Brewing Co.
Easton, Pennsylvania

American Wild Ale

11.40% ABV

Commercial Description:Over a year in the making, this American Wild Ale is fermented with Brettanomyces yeast and aged with red-raspberry puree in Oak barrels for over 1 year, then bottle conditioned in champagne bottles. (ratebeer.com)

Background:
I had this beer at a Weyerbacher rep. tasting at State Line Liquors. I immediately picked up on the Belgian funky yeast and loved it. We had this with the dessert course in our Thanksgiving Bier Dinner. I lost almost everyone with this beer. I liked it and thought it went well with the fruit pies for dessert but it was a little too funky for most of the guest.
Review:
The beer pours a fairly clear cranberry color with a slightly pink white head. It is highly effervescent with a tremendous amount of bubbles rising up from the bottom of the class. It actually looks like a cranberry colored champagne. The head disappeared very quickly but tiny bubbles are still rising up from the bottom.

The nose is sweet raspberries with some funky tart or sour aromas also.

That is one sweet funky and sour beer. Man oh man, no wonder I lost everyone else when I served this as the dessert beer on our Thanksgiving Bier Dinner.

Sweet raspberries up front then that is quickly replaced with a highly carbonated funky sourness before the swallow. The finish is very tart and sweet with more of that funk that must be coming from the Belgian yeast. The finish is also fairly dry since this beer also is 11% ABV

This beer is for funk lovers only. And there is not just funk; this beer also is extremely tart. Actually I’m not sure why I like it, I guess because it’s just so unusual.

Well I’m starting to feel the 11% ABV in this beer. And I’m sharing this 750 bottle.

There is very little change in the taste of this beer as it warms. It is pretty much the same funky sour tart brew at any temperature.

There is an extreme, well, at least a large amount of sediment in the bottom of this bottle. It’s not all lees (yeast sediment from bottle conditioning) I assume there is also a good amount of sediment from the puréed raspberries.

Well after we finished this beer we tasted the lees. It really was not as bad as I thought. The lees seemed to muddle the sharp tart flavors of this beer. It does had a chalky aspect. It usually adds same more yeasty characteristics to the beer but in this case the beer is so funky it really can’t add anything to the flavor.

All and all I really like this beer. As I said earlier you really have to love that funky taste to enjoy this beer. It’s not something I could drink everyday, it is really something I have to be in the mood for. I guess that’s probably why this has been sitting in the beer frig since Thanksgiving; waiting for me to be in a funky mood.

This is an extreme beer; extremely funky. If you like funky; tart and sour beers then you must try this one from Weyerbacher. But don't worry you are probably in the majority if you don't.

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